NFL playoff picture for Week 18: Updated bracket, tiebreaking procedures and seeding

The 2024 NFL regular season is coming to an end. Week 18 is the final week of the season, leading us into the playoffs.

The 2024 NFL regular season is coming to an end. Week 18 is the final week of the season, leading us into the playoffs.

There will be no Thursday or Monday games in Week 18, but after two games on Saturday and 14 on Sunday, the final playoff picture will be finalized. With the recent update to the playoffs, 14 teams will make the field. Most of the playoff spots in each conference are already clinched, but there are still a few spots on the line in Week 18 as well as finalizing the seeding.

Sporting News breaks down the current playoff picture, along with an updated bracket and tiebreaking procedures heading into Week 18.

How many teams make the NFL playoffs in 2025?

Seven teams from both the AFC and the NFC make the playoffs.

The top seeds in each will receive a first-round bye, while the remaining teams duke it out in the Wild Card round. The winners advance and will join the No. 1 seed in the Divisional Round. Those winners then meet in the Championship Round.

After a week off for the Pro Bowl Games, the AFC and NFC representatives will meet in the Super Bowl on Sunday, Feb. 9.

Here's how those 14 slots would play out as we head into Week 18's full Sunday slate:

AFC

1. Kansas City Chiefs (BYE)

2. Buffalo Bills vs. 7. Denver Broncos

3. Baltimore Ravens vs. 6. Pittsburgh Steelers

4. Houston Texans vs. 5. Los Angeles Chargers

NFC

1. Detroit Lions (BYE)

2. Philadelphia Eagles vs. 7. Green Bay Packers

3. Los Angeles Rams vs. 6. Washington Commanders

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. 5. Minnesota Vikings

NFL playoff picture

AFC

*Clinched playoff berth

NFC

*Clinched playoff berth

NFL tiebreakers for playoffs

With a 17-game season, it isn't uncommon for teams to finish with the same record. The league has implemented a deep set of tiebreakers to do its best to provide a hierarchy for teams that have finished with the same win-loss-tie record.

To break a two-team tie within a division

To break a three-team tie within a division

To break a two-team Wild-Card tie (different divisions)

To break a three-team Wild-Card tie (different divisions)

Note from the League: If two clubs remain tied after one or more clubs are eliminated during any step, tiebreaker restarts at Step 1 of two-club format. If three clubs remain tied after a fourth club is eliminated during any step, tiebreaker restarts at Step 2 of three-club format.